BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) – A Baton Rouge mother is turning her pain into purpose by honoring her late daughter’s memory through a scholarship foundation.
Alexis Robinson, a standout volleyball player at Scotlandville High School, was on her way home from work on April 3, 2021, when a drunk driver struck her car head-on. She died two days later.
Her mother, Joan Robinson, said she remembers their final conversation.
“When she got ready for work, she said, ‘Bye, Mama, I love you,’ and those were the last words I ever heard her speak,” Robinson said.
What was supposed to be Alexis’ graduation day became the inspiration for The Spirit of Alexis Robinson Foundation, an organization dedicated to helping students in Baton Rouge attend college through an annual scholarship.
“You can let grief either make you or break you, and I decided to let the grief make me,” Robinson said.
The foundation provides scholarships to local students, offering them the opportunity Alexis never had. Robinson said she views each scholarship recipient as carrying on her daughter’s dream.
“When I thought about doing the scholarship, I felt that whoever received it, Alexis would be going to school through them,” she said.
For Robinson and those closest to her, philanthropy has become a source of healing.
“I heard something that said grief is just love with nowhere to go,” Nalone Sumo, a close friend of Robinson said. “She is around. She is looking down and watching over us. That has gotten me through some of the darkest days—knowing what this journey has meant for my life with her gone, but still appreciating the moments I have now.”
Students who applied for the scholarship had to write an essay about the dangers of drunk driving, an effort to raise awareness while keeping Alexis’ spirit alive.
“I have this big smile on my face because I can see her smiling, knowing we’re keeping her name alive,” Robinson said.
The Robinson family is currently in the process of selecting this year’s scholarship recipients. The long-term goal is to expand the foundation to provide full-ride scholarships to two Baton Rouge students each year.
For more information about the foundation and how you can help contribute, visit thespiritofalexisrobinson.org.
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